runaway hero
by talonshadow
Summary: Dick has escaped the clutches of his cruel father and uncle only to be left out on the streets of Bludhaven. Spotted by the cops he is forced to live in a boy's home but after saving Nightwing life as Shadow, Nightwing decides to ask Shadow to join the team but what happens when Deadpool wants his son back?
1. Chapter 1

To finally belong

**Shadow is Dick Wilson (Dick Grayson) son of Deadpool and nephew to Deathstroke. I now Deadpool is a MARVEL character but I thought it be cool to have a mercenary family. Nightwing is Terry Mcginnis **

**Summary: **Dick has escaped the clutches of his cruel father and uncle only to be left out on the streets of Bludhaven. Spotted by the cops he is forced to live in a boy's home but after saving Nightwing life as Shadow, Nightwing decides to ask Shadow to join the team but what happens when Deadpool wants his son back?

'Blah' – thoughts

"Blah" – talking

'_Blah' _\- dreams

Chapter one

**Shadows POV **

'Run, run and don't stop until your legs give out' was my only thought right now. I was currently running through my father's secret headquarters right now with all his men after me. I couldn't allow myself to get caught. Not now when I'm so close to escaping.

"SHADOW STOP THIS!" I heard my uncle Deathstroke scream as he ran after me and that's when I got scared. Deathstroke and my father are the ones that taught me everything I know but when I saw the exit rout and all my fears melted away only to be replaced but pure determination. Alarms sounded all around me but soon faded as I ran further away from the HQ. I let out a disbelieving laugh as I finally reached the city of Bludhaven. 'I made it! I actually made it!' Only then did I relies how tired I was.

I needed clothes and food. Right now as much as I hated the idea I had to steal them. I walked passed a street of shops and kept a look out for something I might like. I walked past a clothes store and spotted a black hoodie, black pants and a band t-shirt. After punching the glass window and successfully shattering the glass I quickly got dress out of my Shadow uniform. I eventually got some food and water then wondered through the alley ways looking for a place to spend the rest of the night. I was interrupted when I heard sirens. I looked to make sure that they weren't after me.

"Hey kid! What are you doing out here so late? It isn't safe even with Nightwing around." The police officer asked while getting out of his car.

I don't know why but I panicked and ran. I turned around to see if the cop was chasing me and unfortunately he was.

"This is Officer Blake. I found another run away and he's trying to make a runner" he talked into his radio.

I kept running down the alley way but my path was blocked off by another cop car. I stopped running knowing I was already caught.

"Put your hands on head and get on your knees kid. We ain't gonna hurt you we're just gonna take you down to the station, get some forms filled and sent you to a new home." He said calmly and I complied.

**At the station **

"Alright kid I'm just going to ask you some questions ok?" a female officer said and I just nodded my head. "Can you tell me your name, age, date of birth and the names of your parents?" "My name is Derek Archer, I'm 14 years old, my D.O.B is the 1st of June 1997 and…I… don't have any." I answered back. "Ok I'm just going to make some phone call and fill out some form and you'll be off to your new home" she said as she left. Luckily I had faked the documents concerning Derek Archer. I sat there just reflecting on what has happened in my life so far. 'I escaped my abusive father and combat obsessed uncle only to land myself in a boy's home. How great.'

**2 months later**

**Nightwing's POV**

I am so tired right now I feel like I'm about to drop. The mission with the team was a complete failure and I still had patrol in Bludhaven and to top it off I've got to come to the cave early tomorrow for a training session for the team. Not to mention the mission briefing.

"Alright team hit the showers and head home we'll continue the briefing tomorrow morning after training" I said as the all climbed out of the Bio ship. "Hey Nightwing are you coming to Gotham or are you going to Bludhaven tonight?" I heard robin ask me "I'm heading to Bludhaven tonight for patrol." I answer back. I walked to the zeta tubes and instantly I was walking out of a phone booth in Bludhaven. I was hoping there would only be little things tonight like muggings but that hope died when I heard gunshot fire through the air at a warehouse nearby. I made my way towards the warehouses, jumping from roof top to roof top and stopped only when I reached it. I looked down and saw Simon Anderson, one of the biggest drug lords in Bludhaven. This is going to be a long night.

**I'll update soon to all you reader out there!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Shadow's POV**

It been 2 _freaking _months and I still haven't got my life together yet and being at the boys' home wasn't getting any better. At first I thought I was getting pushed around by the older boys because I was the new kid but apparently that wasn't the case. I had also been doing some research as both Shadow and Derek Archer on Nightwing. You can call it a passing curiosity. I probably wouldn't admit this to anyone but I kind of looked up to him even though I had never actually never net him before. I guess I just respected the work he did in Bludhaven and I liked how he stood for everything my father hated.

It was getting late so I made my way back to my dorm room which I shared with 7 other boys aged between the ages 14-17. I was the youngest in my dorm and because of that the rest of the boys made it their responsibility to make my life a living hell. The moment I reached my bunk I knelt down and quickly removed the loose floor boards and started to prepare my uniform for tonight's stake out. I made sure I had all my weapons which included my katana, shurikens, and dagger, mini cross bow with the arrows and a 9mm pistol with the silencer. Everything was ready to go but I couldn't help but feel a little uneasy. Tonight was the night of the biggest drug deal of the year and there's no doubt it going to get very heated especially when Nightwing turns up tonight.

As I returned the floor boards I heard my _'room mates'_ approaching the dorm. I quickly finished up and jumped on my bunk.

"Well if it isn't the little freak." Mike Stilson laughed as he entered the room.

I gritted my teeth and glared at him and all his buddies. This guy has been getting on my nerve recently and if I was to stay in his presents any longer than 3 second, I might actually kill him. I smiled at that thought and preceded to think about all the ways I could torment him using all my training.

"Did you go out and have fun with your friends today…oh that's right you don't have any loser" he continued to taunt me.

"Leave me alone" I said as I glared at him

He snorted at this and the minute he opened his mouth again was the minute things got personal. "You know I just realized, no one knows why you're in a boy's home, not even the cops. So…what's your story freak? Did you get kicked out or did you make a runner, or are mommy and daddy dead?" Mike said with a smirk on his face.

HOW DARE HE BRING UP MY MOTHER! My father, I understand but he will not dishonor my mother's memory. She was the only thing that ever meant anything to me. For the next few moments I saw red. I jumped off my bed and lunged at Mike punching him in the face repeatedly. I could see the shock written all over his face. His nose was bleeding and most likely broken. I didn't stop until I heard one of the boys whisper "he's going to kill him!"

I stopped then and looked at my hands. They were shaking and covered in blood. Had I just become my father? I got up and ran through the door and I didn't stop until I was at least 50m away from the home. I walked through the park and even though it was only 3:00pm it was empty. I kept my head low and walked at a steady pace. I looked at my hands again _'what would mother say?' _ I asked myself. She would be so disappointed right now. I mindlessly walked through the park remembering the day I saw my mother die.

**_Flashback_**

_It was a beautiful spring day and all the kids were playing outside enjoying the cool breeze. All except me. I was hidden away in our basement which my father had turned into a training facility. My mother sat on the seat next to the stairs watching me and my father spar. I was 6 at the time but I was already fighting like a pro. I punched, kicked, lunged and dogged and after 1 hour of the same thing I was starting to tire. My mother realized this and looked at me with the concern showing in her eyes but unfortunately my father realized too and weakness was not tolerated in this house. He pressed his offence harder and faster until I couldn't keep up. In 10mins I was on the floor bleeding nose and lip. I had a swollen eye and a bruised check. My mother instantly ran to my aid and I hugged her tightly because at times like these I needed to know that I still had someone to live for. She returned my hug just as tight before peeling away to asses my injuries. _

_"__There is no room for weakness Richard, you are destined for great things and I will not tolerate failure" my father warned me _

_"__Please dear he is only 6 years old. She should be playing outside with the other kids his age not cooped up down here" my mother intervened _

_He glared at her then signaled me off to have a shower. I went upstairs took a shower, got dressed then came downstairs. I stood in the hallway and what I saw made my blood run cold. My father had a knife at my mother's throat and looked at me with his cold piercing eyes and said "everybody has flaws but in order to create the perfect assassin, the perfect weapon, you need to find that flaw and destroy it. Your mother is your flaw. She makes you soft, makes you weak but not anymore" my heart almost stopped beating when I saw him slit her throat, when I saw her body fall limp on the ground. _

_Tears sprung into my eyes but I refuse to them fall. He walked over to me and placed his hand on my chin and forced be to look up at him "remember no emotion equals no weakness one day you will be just like me whether you like it or not. Do you understand?" he asked and I nodded "good. I would have wanted to have to kill your mother for no reason." He said then walked away leaving me alone with my dead mother._

**_Flashback end _**

**Nightwing's POV **

I was on my afternoon run when a thought made its way into my mind. With Wally and Artemis off the team and kaldur on break we need new team members. But it's not every day you walk into teenage superheroes and say _'hi want to join a team of teenage superheroes?' _I was suddenly pulled out of my thoughts when I bumped into what looked like a 14 year old boy who I had managed to knock to the ground.

"I'm so sorry, are you alright?" I apologized

He didn't say anything but if looks can kill I would be dead 20 times over. I assessed him for any injuries and I noticed the small cut at the side of his head gushing with blood.

"Darn kid your bleeding. Here let me help" I said as I pulled out a tissue from my pocket and dabbed it on his forehead. He immediately winced away before he looked up with a look of realization in his eyes then he relaxed a little.

"D…don't touch me!" he stuttered.

"Let me walk you home. Do your parents know you're here?" I asked.

His expression softened but not by much. He was really guarded. I wonder what happened to this kid. He looked no older than 14. Kids his age are supposed to be riding skateboard and hanging around in packs. I don't know why but I suddenly felt over protective of this kid.

"My parents are dead. I live in a boy's home not far from here" he said looking down at his feet and I instantly felt sorry for him. I walked him back to the boy's home and when we arrived at the front gate we were greeted by an old lady who looked really mad.

"There you are you devil child!" she hissed at him

"Mike Stilson is in the infirmary because you!" he screamed at him before turning to me with a sickly sweet smile "I'm sorry if this boy disturbed you sir. It won't happen again" he said as he grabbed the boy from the back of his collar dragging him into the house.

Poor kid. I glared daggers at the back of her head. I it had not been for Bruce I would be in a mess. I walked home replaying the events of today in my head. Darn I forgot to ask for his name. I can't explain why I felt this way but I knew I had to help this kid. He was almost like a mystery I couldn't solve. I walked into my apartment and got dressed in my uniform then made my way to the nearest zeta tube.

**Time Skip 12:36pm **

**Shadows POV **

I stood at the edge of the roof watching everything play out. I was in uniform, armed and ready to go. I had my Katana strapped on my back, my dagger was strapped to my thigh and all my shurikens were in a hidden pocket in my utility belt. I decided to leave my gun and cross bow behind.

As I watched the scene play out through my binoculars I realized there were more henchmen than I had expected to see. After another 10mins of watching the scene unfold Nightwing arrived. Finally some action! I adjusted my mask and pulled on the hood attached to my cape.

I watch as Nightwing gracefully took down as many henchmen but I knew that soon he would be out numbered. I watched the henchmen surround him. This was my opportunity to strike so I jumped through the roof of the building which was made off glass. I pulled out my katana and began to dodge bullets or block them.

**Nightwing's POV **

Darn! I'm surrounded. At times like these I wish I had stayed in bed. I started to look around for a way out until I heard the glass from the roof top shatter and someone jump in. I admit, I was surprised by this especially since he was a just a kid! He wore a full black outfit with a cape and hood. He was holding a katana in his hands and looked like he was ready to attack.

The sound of gun fire brought me back to reality but even though I was still fighting I watched the kid. His skill was amazing and the way he wielded the katana, it was almost like he was cutting the bullets in half. His combat style wasn't like Batman's, it was more brutal but just as effective. Soon enough we had all the henchmen rounded up and all the dealers were in handcuffs and that when I decided to approach this hero.

"Um… thanks for the save but who are you?" I asked with genuine curiosity.

"I'm Shadow. It nice to finally meet you." He answered

"I've never seen you before so I'm going to assume you're new to the hero business" I said with a knowing smirk

"Yeah you could say that" he said looking down. I could tell he was trying to hide a blush.

I chuckled at this. "Kid…how would you like to join the Young Justice Team?"


	3. Chapter 3

**Shadow's POV**

It had been 5 week ever since Nightwing had offered me a spot on the team and they were the best five weeks of my life. I had grown really close to Nightwing over time and I've even been on patrol with. After the first two weeks I managed to figure out that his name was Terry McGinnis and that he was adopted by multi- millionaire Bruce Wayne. After reveling what I learn to him, he made me swear not to tell anyone. He even invited me on patrol with him a few times and on some occasions I spent the night as his apartment. I felt like he was the only person I could trust so a few days ago I decided to reveal my Identity to him.

**Flashback**

_We had just finished patrolling the city and returned to Nightwing's apartment. I plonked myself on his couch and stretched my legs. We were both still in our uniforms and were really tired. I was about to make myself comfortable but then he asked a question that made me freeze._

_"__Who are you? I mean what's your name? What's your story?" he asked with a hint of curiosity_

_"__It doesn't matter" I replied hoping that he would drop the subject_

_"__Come on! You know who I am and I trust you enough to keep my secret so why can't you trust me? He asked with a brief look of hurt in his eyes._

_"__Richard Wilson" I whispered shamefully _

_"__Wilson? I know that name…" he said trying to spark a memory_

_"__I'm sure you and your friend in the Justice League know Wade and Slade Wilson" I hinted_

_He looked at me with wide eyes after finally making the connection. "How are you related to them?"_

_"__Wade is my father and Slade is my uncle. Whilst my father was doing business my uncle took the liberty of training me since I could walk and on some occasions my father would personally train me but I ran away. I didn't want to be bad! I don't want to inherit my father's place as king of the underworld! I just wanted to be like the other kids. I wanted to have a real childhood but I couldn't even speak without permission! And every time I screwed up I would cop the beating of my life! I didn't…I couldn't live like that." I said and looked down again. Tears sprung in my eyes but I refused to let them fall. I realized that Nightwing would never accept me now that he knew that my father and uncle rule the criminal underworld._

_"__I understand if you never want to see me again. Most people stay as far away from me as possible just to avoid any contact with my family" I said _

_I fully expected him to look at me with disgust but to my surprise he pulled me into a tight hug and said "your family doesn't own or deserve you and even though it's only been 5 weeks I see you as my little brother." He said and for the first time in 8 years I let myself cry. _

**Flashback end **

I was sitting on Terry's couch when he approached me and asked "so when am I going to get to show you off to the team?" he asked as he sat next to me on the couch.

I shifted my feet uneasily "I don't think me meeting the team is a good idea" I said slowly

"Why not?"

"Because it could put them in danger! What if my father finds out? He would sent all his men to kill both us and the team or worse he could sent my uncle!" I said trying my best not to sound frantic.

"And that's exactly why you should join. Your family would never think you would join the Justice society so they would never think to look there and the team is a covert team meaning our job is to do the job without people knowing we did it" Nightwing argued

"I still don't think it's a good idea" I didn't like this one bit.

"Just think about it. I'm going to the cave. I have to debrief the team for their mission. Get some rest and don't put too much pressure on your arm." He said as he started to get up.

I had forgotten all about my arm. I had injured it on patrol last night. Soon enough I had started to drift off into sleep.

**Nightwing's POV**

I made my way to the cave and as soon as I entered the kitchen I bombarded with questions from the team.

"Hey Nightwing! Who's that kid you work with?"

"Do you have a sidekick?"

"Is he joining the team?"

"What's his name?"

"Can we meet him?"

"Wait what are you talking about?" I asked overwhelmed by all the commotion

"Just watch" robin said as he flicked on the news report.

"_This is Rebecca Hudson coming to you from Bludhaven City. Not long ago Nightwing and what seems to be his new 'Sidekick' stopped another robbery at Bludhaven National Bank. Nightwing and the mysterious hooded hero seem to be working together more and more often. They have been spotted working side by side at multiple locations throughout the city so we ask are selves did Bludhaven gain another hero or is this just a temporary alliance?" _

I stared at the T.V in shock. I didn't think it would be all over the media.

"So who is he?" Batgirl asked impatiently.

"Shadow. He's a friend who help me with my patrol sometimes."

"Is he joining the team?" Beast Boy asked eagerly

"I'm trying to get him to but he seems reluctant."

"Can you bring over to the cave? Just so we can meet him."

"Yeah I will next week after all he seems like he could do with some friends his age."

"He kind of reminds me of Batman" Batman walked in the moment Bart said that.

"Nightwing we need to talk." And that's when I knew I was in big trouble


	4. Chapter 4

**Note to readers: I know that wade Wilson is a Marvel character and I know that I probably should have labelled this story as a cross over but wade doesn't have a huge role in this story and because I'm more familiar with Slade Wilson I'm going to use him more than wade. Also keep in mind that I'm changing wade's (Deadpool) personality to and abusive, dark kind of person to fit the story **

**P.S. I love how wade and Slade rhyme and the fact that they both have the same surname so I just thought it would be cool to make them brothers.**

**Chapter 4**

**Deathstroke's POV **

'That little ungrateful brat is going to pay!' was the first thought that popped into Slade's head when he saw the boy running towards the woods. He was furious. He was a vital asset to the league of assassins, he was their best assassin and if the information the boy had about all their plans for the future leaked they would be over.

"Sir, master wishes to speak with you" a guard said as he held his fist to his heart as a sign of respect to their superiors

"I will be there shortly but in the time you are dismissed" Deathstroke replied in his usual cold, intimidating voice.

He made his way to the head office and pushed the door open.

"Any word of the boy?" Slade asked

"Yes actually… there was a news report not long ago. We have a bigger problem than we originally thought." Wade relied

"And what would this problem be"

"The boy seems to have allied himself with an unofficial member of the justice league. He has been spotted multiple times with Nightwing. If his relations is confirmed by the justice league then our greatest weapon will be used against us. Find him and bring him here. He will be punished severely for his betrayal. I will not stand for any form of disobedience! FIX THIS ISSUE BEFORE I DO! AND YOU ARE WELL AWARE OF WHAT IM CAPABLE OF!" Wade screamed absolutely furious with the matter.

"We should wait. We can use this to our advantage" Slade said with a smirk "we should bid our time and wait for the justice league to open up to him with their secrets then we take back what is ours"

"Very well. You may proceed with your plan but plan backfires or fails in any way I will kill the boy"

Slade grimaced at the thought of wade killing the boy. So much effort and time gone into his training and all for what. No. Slade will not allow the boy to die. Not after spending almost 10 years training him. He was not going to waste his effort. He had other plan for Richard

**Nightwing's POV **

"I don't like this. I don't like this at all." Shadow muttered as they approached the zeta tubes.

"Relax it will be fine. Last time I checked the team was eager to meet you and besides it'll be good making friends your age" Nightwing said in a cheery voice.

Shadow shifted awkwardly at the mention of friend which didn't go unnoticed by the Bludhaven hero.

"Hey what's up? Anything you want to talk about?" Nightwing asked with slight concern.

"No! Nothing. I'm fine!" Shadow snapped and glared at the older hero.

Nightwing sighed. He knew how stubborn Shadow could be. Heck convincing him to visit the mountain today took a full week.

"Come on just tell me. I can help you figure whatever it is out." Nightwing pleaded

"I don't exactly fit in" Shadow replied while glaring into nothing

"What do you mean? Of course you do! I mean you fit in perfectly with me" Nightwing pointed out

"Yea well that different… I've never really had… never mind" he said still glaring into nothing.

Nightwing felt his heart clench at that. 'This kid is only what, 15? And has been though too much already. I've never seen anyone so…damaged. He only told me the basics of his story he never when into detail with anything. Come to think of it I've never seen this kid smile.' Nightwing thought.

**(Shadow turned 15 during the 5 week stay with Nightwing)**

So it was decided. Terry would make it his mission to give Richard the childhood he deserved.

**Shadow's POV **

I felt a hand place it's self on my shoulder. I looked up to see Nightwing's staring down at me. Even though his eyes were covered by the mask, I could still see the sympathy and pity in them and I immediately shrugged it off and glared at him. I didn't want his pity or sympathy.

"Let's just get this over with" I snarled at him.

It wasn't that I didn't like him, in fact he was my best friend. I just didn't know how to interact with people. Nightwing walked into the zeta tube and I followed. I was soon surrounded by a bright light which died down quickly. I stepped out of the zeta tube and entered the so called mountain terry and been going on about for the last week.

"Come on. The team should be in the main room" he said as he walked off.

I followed him and soon enough I found myself in the door way being stared at by a bunch of teenagers.

"Team this is Shadow. Shadow meet the team" Nightwing had barley introduced us when what appeared to be a speedster rush forward and grabbed my hand and shook it.

"Hi! I'm Bart Allen or impulse. It's so great to finally meet ya. I've seen you on the news heaps of times in the past few weeks."

I merely nodded. A green skinned girl walked over to me and introduced herself.

"Hii! I'm Megan and this is Connor, Cassie, Jamie, Robin, Batgirl, Gar, Karen, Mal and logon and Arsenal. It's great to finally meet you. We've head heaps about from Nightwing."

"It's good to finally meet you all" I said

"Hey Robin! You think you could give Shadow a tour of the mountain while I set up for the next training session?" Nightwing asked Robin.

The younger male looked up and agreed. He stood up and led the way. I hesitated a bit. I didn't lie the idea of being around someone I barely knew. I would much prefer staying close to Nightwing as I wasn't as good with small talk as him.

"So… how'd you meet Nightwing?" Robin asked

"He was taking down a drug lord and he was surrounded and I helped him out" I replied

"Cool. So are you joining the team or are you just visiting?" he asked

"I'm not sure actually. Nightwing's trying to convince me but I don't think it's such a great idea." I said awkward, hoping he would avoid the topic.

"Why not? Having some one of your skill set would be a great addition to the team" he said while frowning.

"I-" "team report to training area" I was cut short by the announcement which I was grateful for since I didn't know how to answer his question without giving too much away.

"Well this is going to be an interesting training session" he said with a smirk on his face.

"Why is that?" I asked confused

"Well from what I heard from all the news reports you're pretty good at what you do and I want to see how good you are against a League member."

My insides froze. How could I have been so stupid? I didn't think about how the media would make a huge deal about me helping out, being a hero. _Hero. Me, a hero. _Something a never thought I would be. The words seemed foreign in my mouth. It almost made me smile. Almost, until I remembered the about the news report. I kept a straight face but inside was a different story. I was panicking. I was not going back to my father. No way. Never. I would rather kill myself and just end everything then go back.

We continued walking until we reached the training area. The whole team was already there as well as Black Canary and Nightwing.

"Alright todays training session will be a little different. Instead of breaking off into pairs we will be assessing each spar. Ok our first pair of the day will be Bart and Jamie."

The match was over in a matter of minutes. Both boys were skilled but Jamie got distracted easily and Bart failed to assess his opposition's strengths and weaknesses. In the end Bart was victorious in battle.

"Alright boys good match but can anyone tell me what they did wrong?" Canary asked

They went on discussing their match but I couldn't help but let my mind wonder. The sparring sessions I had with my father and uncle. It always ended up with me on the floor bleeding and bruised or unconscious.

"Ok let's see what skills our newest arrival possesses." She called us up

I stepped on to the sparring area and the floor lit up. I got into a fighting stance. Nightwing signalled for us to begin and Canary didn't waste any time. She ran at me and threw a punch at my head but I blocked it with my arm then I flipped over her and did a round house kick which she dogged. She kept attempting to landed punches and kicks on me but I kept dogging and blocking it. She almost landed a back kick on my ribs and that when I decided to end this match. I dropped into a low crouch and extended my leg and knocked her off her feet

"Black Canary fail" announced the automatic voice.

The match had only lasted about 5 minutes. I extended my hand out to help her up and she accepted. I turned to see looks of pure shock, astonishment and… admiration?

"Wow. You're good. Who taught you?" Batgirl asked as she was the first to come out of shock.

I instantly tensed at her question but thankfully no one noticed but Nightwing.

"Alright guys I should probably get going. I still need to check out that warehouse on the docks. Let's go kid." Nightwing said, coming to my rescue.

I immediately turned and glared at him for calling me kid. He seemed to notice and just smirked as he walked off the zeta tubes. I silently followed behind.

**Nightwing's POV**

We exited the zeta tube and went home. The whole way Shadow was quiet. It was when we arrived home he started asking me questions.

"Did you know about the news reports?" he asked in a mono tone voice

I sighed loudly "yes I did but it doesn't matter because we have a solution" I tried to explain

"What, joining the team. You can't even begin to understand the amount of danger they would be in! YOU don't understand how big of a risk you took when you even became associated with me!" he screamed back at me and only then did I realise that he was genuinely scared. No. terrified of what his father might do and that angered me. What had this man done to this child!

"Your family will never suspect it. We can use this whole news report thing to our advantage."

"Oh really? How? The whole freaking criminal underworld knows that I'm in Bludhaven!" he said panicked but I knew he was trying to be strong.

"Your father knows that you wouldn't risk being caught by him right? So by now he would totally be convinced that you left the city, and if you join our COVERT team the chance of him finding you will be kept to a minimum." I reasoned.

"I don't want risk much. I don't want to go back" he said in a hushed tone.

"Just trust me. You won't have to go back. I promise."

"Ok but I must warn you, I never did learn to work with people my age."

"It'll be fine"

**3****rd****POV at the Cave **

"We need that kid on our team" Mal said breaking the silence.

"He's skills are… amazing" Robin said completely marvelled

"Yea I know right. I mean I head he was good but that was a whole new level of crazy" Karen said

"He beat Canary! That almost impossible!" Bart said with wide eyes

"Is it just me or does he sort of have a rebellious vibe coming off him?" Megan asked the group

Arsenal snorted. "I like him better already"

"I don't know guys he seems kind of Shady. We don't know anything about him." Batgirl contributed

"That may be so but to have him on our side in a mission would give us a huge advantage especially with the stealth compartment being a covert team and all" Superboy reasoned with Batgirl

"How do you know he's stealthy?" asked Jamie

"Nightwing told me" Superboy said ending the conversation.

**Ok readers sorry for the late update but I had a lot of things going on. Feel free to give me an ideas for the story. The more reviews the faster the updates. I promise!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Nightwing's POV **

It had been a month since Shadow joined the team but Nightwing was yet to see any improvement on Shadow's social skills. He mostly stayed in his assigned room or was in the training area and not to mention the fact that he almost never came to any team bonding activities. The only times he did come was when he was forced to go by either Batman or Nightwing. On the bright side he did seem to have had a conversation or two with robin.

Shadow had made it clear that he didn't want anything to do with anyone and Nightwing soon figured that in order to get this kid to open up he would need professional help. Nightwing walked alone though the corridor and stopped at a familiar door. He knocked and waited patiently.

"Oh hello Nightwing. Can I help you?" Black Canary said as she opened the door.

"Yes actually" Nightwing replied.

"Come in and take a seat." She said motioning for him to come inside. Nightwing slowly sat down on the green seat and sighed.

"It's Shadow. He seems so closed off and has basically isolated himself from society. I've been trying to get him to open up to me but he absolutely refuses to let anyone in. he tries to make himself seem emotionless. He says it's just the way he is but I know he's only doing it to avoid getting hurt and I don't know from what. Canary you of all people know how bad it is to bottle up all your emotions. You've cracked even the most stubborn of people so I'm asking if you could talk to him, get him out of that dark state of mind he's in at the moment."

"I have most defiantly noticed his absents in team bonding activities and lack of interaction with the team. In all honesty I was going to come to you to discuss his case and the amount of sessions he would have with me during the week." Canary responded

"How many sessions does he need during the week?"

"That can only be determined after the first session. I need to see if he is willing to co-operate or if he's going to be one of those stubborn kids. Bring him in tomorrow at 10:30 in the morning and we'll see how he goes."

"Yeah ok but man…he's not going to be happy with this one bit, but it's for the best. I'll speak to him beforehand" Nightwing suggested

"I think

That'll be a good idea, but first tell me a bit about him so I could have something to work with."

Nightwing hesitated but he knew he would have to give her something to work with or else there was nothing she could do.

"His mother died when he was little and up until now he has been living in an abusive household with his father and uncle. That's all I know but please Canary don't let this information leak to the team or the league trusted me enough to tell me this and the only reason I told you was for his best interest." He stated.

"Don't worry. What was said in here stays in here" she said calmly

Nightwing relaxed as soon as she confirmed her willingness to keep that information a secret. He slowly made his way to Shadow's room, nerves of the reaction he would get. He stood in front of the door and knocked but only to be met with silence. Nightwing came to the conclusion that he wasn't in his room. He made his way to the training area where he knew Shadow would be. He walked into the large room. If anything it looked more like a gym. Looked around and saw Shadow beating up a punching bag, showing no mercy which only made Nightwing more nerves. Shadow wore a black tank top and black Nike short. He had bandages wrapped around his hands and was wearing black and white Adidas boxing shoes, his hair was dangling so low it was almost covering his eyes so there was no need to even where a mask.

"Umm hey Shad…how are you?" he asked

"Fine" Shadow said continuing to punch the punching bag

"look I know you're still adjusting to this whole working with other people but I think you should make more of an effort to you know… hang out with the team a bit more."

"What if I told you I don't want to?"

"I knew you would say that so I talked to Canary and she says she want to see you tomorrow in her office at 10:30am for a counselling session" Nightwing said

With one Spine shattering punch the punching bag fell to the ground and sand started to pour out of it.

"Cancel it I'm not going" Shadow said through gritted teeth

"You're in a bad state of mind and closing yourself off from the world, from people isn't the answer. Canary can help you-"

"NO! I don't need any sort of help! I've made it pretty clear that I can take care of myself! I don't need you and much less Canary breathing down my neck, treating me like I'm some CHILD who needs help or something! So just LEAVE ME ALONE" Shadow ranted then stormed out of the training area.

**Shadow's POV **

Shadow stormed into his room and slammed the door behind him. He took out his uniform and his katana and laid them on his bed. He quickly took a shower than got dresses and armed himself. He needed to get out of the cave, maybe vent a little. He walked past the team and into the zeta tube. He noticed the team were giving him questioning looks but he ignored them.

When he got to Bludhaven he made his way to the parking lot under Terry's apartment and got on his motorbike. He drove around looking for thugs to beat up. After 2 hours of rampaging through the city and beating up thugs and muggers he decided to stay at the boys home tonight because there was no way he was going to Terry's apartment and maybe if he stayed there he wouldn't have to go to see Canary tomorrow. Shadow parked his bike 2 blocks away and then walked the rest of the way to the boys' home. He climbed up all the way to the attic and stepped inside his own little room. After the incident with Mike Stilson he was a danger to all his roommates… or at least that's what his social worker said. He quickly changed and packed away his uniform and weapons and went to sleep.

He woke up the next morning to someone shaking his shoulders. He looked up to find Terry smirking at him.

"Did you really think by staying the night here you would get out of seeing Canary today?" he asked with humour lacing his voice.

Shadow groaned as he realised he would have to go now. Terry chuckled at his antics.

"Get up. Its 9:30 you have an hour to get ready."

"Go away! I'm not going anywhere!"

"Well in that case I'm going to have to make you" he said in a sing song voice and pulled Shadow's blanket away then jumped on his back.

"Terry if you don't get off me right now I will not hesitate to put you in a permanent coma." Shadow hissed at him.

"Please you have to go. Please. I care about you that's why I asked her to speak to you."

Shadow's expression melted and he sighed "must you guilt me into doing this?"

Terry just grinned at him and got off his back.

**Time skip **

***Shadow***

Shadow and Nightwing stood outside Canary's counselling room. Shadow gave one light knock on the door and turned around and started to walk away.

"She not there I'm leaving"

"No you're not. Get back here and knock properly."

Shadow then sighed and walked to the door muttering curses and knocked on the door. After a few seconds he was greeted with Canary's smiling face. He turned around only to find Nightwing was gone.

"Good morning Shadow. Take a seat" she said as she gestured to the infamous green chair.

"Do you know why you're here?"

"Because Nightwing said I had to be here"

"Do you know why Nightwing wants you to be here?"

"Because according to him I have bad social skills" he said glaring at her

"Well you haven't been interacting with the team a lot"

"…." He stayed silently and continued to burn holes into the ground

"Nightwing said that you have trouble making friends. Do you get shy around people or do you get nerves?"

"…."

"Shadow, it's not a sign of weakness to open up to me"

"…."

"I get that you're trying to be tough but you don't have to shut people out. My sources tell me that your mother pasted away when you were young so I think you are trying to push everyone away so you don't have to go through that again or maybe it was the abusive life style you lived. Maybe you're scared that if you let people in they would set all over you like your father and uncle did to you. But that won't happen here"

Shadow's blood froze. How did she… Nightwing. _'How could he? I trusted him. How could he? How much did he tell her? I'm so stupid! How could I have trusted him? I just repeated a past mistake!' _Shadow stood up with clenched fists and a tense body.

"You don't know anything about me so stop pretending you do. My past and my family is my business so leave me alone." He said in a quiet but deadly voice and swiftly walked out.

He tried to calm himself down but his emotions were going haywire. He didn't know what to think. He didn't know whether to feel angry and vengeful or hurt and betrayed. He was shaken. _'What if the league found out? Or what if they use me to take down my father? What if they put me in jail for my father's crimes?' _ He was pulled out of his thoughts when he bumped into Batman.

**Batman's POV **

"Sorry. Wasn't watching were I was going" Shadow said not even bothering to look up.

Batman could instantly tell that there was something wrong. The boy was tense and his hands were shaking.

"Shadow" he said getting the boy to look up at him. Even with his mask on he could tell that he was hurting and on the verge of breaking down. He knew that look. He wore that exact same look when he was at his parent's funeral. He instantly knew that the boy needed a friend, someone to lean on, someone he could relate to.

"Is something troubling you"

"No everything is fine"

"Come with me"

The boy followed Batman into the nearest conference room with a confused and worried look on his face.

"I know you know my identity as well as Terry's and Tim's and I know that amongst the public you are known as Derek Archer. I want to know if I can trust you to keep that to yourself."

"I won't tell a soul of you identity nor of your family's"

"Good. In that case I was wondering if you would like to spend a night at the manor, I think Tim will be pleased to have company his age."

"I… don't think that would be a good idea Mr. Wayne… I know you have a lot of work to do with the Joker out of Arkam and I wouldn't want to… burden you with my presents." He said rather unsure of himself. _'Maybe that talk with Black Canary did really shatter his self-confidence. I shouldn't have listened in but I needed to know where his loyalty remained.' _

"A burden? If anything you would be great help against the Joker. Besides I could give you a few tips with your hand to hand combat."

"Yeah…yeah ok thanks"

**Shadow's POV **

Shadow walked along side Batman to the zeta tubes. when Robin met up with them there he gave Batman a confused look.

"An explanation will be given to you at the Cave" Batman said

When they arrived at the Cave Shadow marvelled at what he saw. He turned around and saw that Tim was smirking at him.

"pretty cool ha"

"I must admit, this place is pretty amazing"

"Master Batman, I am displeased that you failed to mention that we would be having a guest tonight." A voice called out from the shadows

"Sorry Alfred. It was under short notice"

"I should go set up the guest room then"

"Thank you Alfred"

Batman pulled down his cowl and faced Shadow and Robins direction.

"Tim there is no longer any reason for us to keep our identities a secret from him. He figured it out."

Tim looked at Shadow in shock then smiled and moved his hand to his mask and peeled it off his face revealing a set of icy blue eyes.

"Tim Drake, nice to meet you" he said extending his and out and Shadow mimicked his actions by removing his hood and mask, revealing his sparkling blue eyes and shaking his hand.

"Derek Archer, nice to meet you Tim"

**ok that's it for today. please review. I want to know if this story is worth writing. **


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